Men and women are arriving in Washington, D.C. by the busload, planes, trains, automobiles, and any other imaginable mode of transportation to join in what might be the most historical march of protest on record this Saturday. Organizers, who began with a modest call on Facebook, say the event is likely to attract at least a quarter of million participants in the nation’s capital alone. Some say possibly as many as 500,000, more than the attendance at Donald Trump’s swearing-in ceremony on yesterday. The Women’s March on Washington is expected to surpass another inauguration-related demonstration - Women’s Suffrage Parade of 1913.
That movement had approximately 5,000 to 8,000 suffragists marching down Pennsylvania Avenue the day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. The Women’s Suffrage efforts are considered to be a major factor in winning women’s right to vote.
Saturday’s march is headlined to raise awareness of all civil rights feared to be threatened under Donald Trump’s presidency. The other astounding news is not that there are about 600 sister marches planned throughout America, but the united front represented globally.
A world front
Reportedly, somewhere between 3,000 to 5,000 demonstrators showed up at Sydney, Australia’s Martin Place carrying banners with messages like “Dump the Trump.” Protesters in Brussels, Belgium gathered to denounce Trump and sexism.
While all do not necessarily single out the new President, they all come against anyone striking against humanity. One citizen in Greece who organized the march in Athens stated that she did not want her 4-year-old son growing up in a world where everything that has been fought for gets snatched away. A tour manager from Amsterdam says she wants to be part of a world where more people choose love rather than hate and will not stand idly by while a lying bully has been given one of the most responsible jobs in the world.
She added that the march was anti-hateful rhetoric, misogyny, bigotry, hate speech and xenophobia. Even in Erbil, Iraq and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia are braving the challenges they face due to corruption and tribalism are preparing to march.
Countries united in making their voices heard
The following is a very short list of countries where marches are taking place.
There are 84 known countries, including every major country on the continent, where demonstrators are ready to put their stamp on history. Some of them may be surprising or never even heard of before. Certainly, no leader would want something like this as a part of their legacy.
- Antarctic Peninsula
- Aruba
- Belarus
- Bulgaria
- Bermuda
- Botswana
- Chile
- Congo
- Costa Rica
- Czech Republic
- Ecuador
- Ghana
- Iceland
- Israel
- Indonesia
- Kenya
- Kosovo
- Lebanon
- Macau
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Mauritius
- Myanmar
- Russia
- Slovenia
- South Korea
- Vietnam
